


Lavender Bells

by dr_bobanner



Category: X-Men Evolution
Genre: F/M, Hanahaki Disease, Post-Canon, Remy is still a bad guy, Rogue is still crushing on Scott, Slow Burn, Unrequited Crush, Unrequited Love, Unrequited Love Disease, hanahaki, x-men evolution spoilers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-18
Updated: 2019-05-03
Packaged: 2019-06-28 20:00:42
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,187
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15714087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dr_bobanner/pseuds/dr_bobanner
Summary: The Apocolypse has come and gone, and the students of Xavier's School for the Gifted have moved on in life. Some remain as X-Men and teach the new generation, others leave to pursue an average life and education, but all hold the special bond of their mutanthood. Those rejecting the life of an X-Men even feeling that bond, as Remy LeBeau still pines for his lover lost. Only seeing Rogue in battle, the man finds himself unable to face her in such a way and after discovering her own love for another, begins feeling a pain far greater than a broken heart.





	1. Chapter 1

Despite the reasons, Remy found something very attractive about a woman that was able to send him flying through a wall. Rogue may have been borrowing his teammates power, evident by her metallic skin and far exceeding strength, but all the same it was another move to endear him to her. She was far more a woman now at twenty-five than when they met years ago, an eighteen and twenty-two year old stowed away on a train heading down south like a pair of runaway lovers. Well, that had only been a fantasy applied after the fact. The reality was Remy had been his cunning, young self, stealing away a pretty girl for his own means. But this time, the pretty girl was far more of a spit fire than he'd given credit for, coming at him with everything she had as her teammates faced his. For a small break in at an office, not even holding the employees hostage but letting them run free, Xavier had only sent a small team of his best X-Men to face the Acolytes. This pleased Remy, any chance to trade blows with Rogue as they had over the years with the occasional flirtation.

"Now stay down." Rogue commanded, a heavy foot pressing down on Remy's chest.

"Just say the magic word, chere." He drawled, charging a card between his fingers and sending it flying between the two.

The flash gave him a chance to get out from under the girl and run back through the offices they were infiltrating. By now, Victor should have gotten to the files they were sent out for and the distraction he and the other Acolytes presented would turn tail and run. But he so wished the fight could go on, going toe to toe with his beautiful Rogue. More so he wished for her to be his, but the woman never followed up on the promise he gave her all those years ago in the form of his Queen of Hearts card. Perhaps it was her pride, or perhaps it was their opposing sides, but that just made their few interactions all the more enjoyable.

Before Remy could take his chance to woo Rogue in their fight and flirtations more, he saw the familiar blond hair of Victor Creed running from a corner office and towards the exit. Taking the cue, he whistled to the rest of the team and ran for the closest exit, a stairwell the Cajun vaulted himself down with excitement as the team of good guys chased them down. The X-Men were still hot on their trail, but after making his way to the ground level, Remy sealed a large set of doors and gave it a good charge. He doubted they would follow much longer. At the back alley of the building a getaway van waited, the Acolytes piled in and began the hurried drive back to the base of operations. 

"Piece of cake." St. John cackled, manically turning the steering wheel as they headed down a back road out of town.

"Don't you jinx us, you Aus-" Victor was cut short as at the end of the ally a familiar blue and yellow figure appeared at the end of the alleyway.

Of course, there was nothing but maniacal laughter from the driver as the car sped up towards Scott Summers. Scott readied his goggles to take out the truck tires and apprehend the villains, only to realize after getting his aim the trigger had jammed. He kept pressing at the button, his visor not lifting to let him get a clear shot at the truck barreling towards him. 

"Scott, move!" A familiar drawl cried out before suddenly the man was pushed out of the way.

The feat was too fast to understand, the men in the car aside from Remy didn't care much who they had hit just that they left, but Remy was left with the sudden imprint of his mind of Rogue splayed across the front of the car on the to roll off limply to the side of the road. There wasn't a beat missed as Remy sprang from the moving car despite the confused cry of his teammates, rolling over his shoulder until reaching a stop and running back towards the two hero's.

"Stay where you are!" Scott yelled, kneeling at Rogue's side as she whimpered in pain, certain limbs turned in directions the shouldn't and what would eventually be bruises blooming on her forehead and collar bone.

"Let me help, I been tra-"

"I said stay where you are, Gambit!" Scott loomed protectively at Rogue's side, not daring to move her in case of spinal injuries, as he stared down Remy.

It was seconds before the rest of the team caught up and Logan had the Cajun pinned to the wall, claws at his throat as the rest of the team hurried to see where the other Acolytes had gone.

"What did you do?!" Logan demanded.

"I didn't do anything, I'm trying to help!"

"Stop yelling!" The squabbling of men was silenced as Kitty Pryde took to her best friends side, taking her time to look over Rogue's injuries. "Logan, she needs to absorb your healing factor."

"No, Kit..." Rogue moaned, trying to open her eyes and look at her friend.

"God damn it, Rogue, you just got hit by a truck. You need this." Kitty motioned for Logan to come forward, carefully moving Rogue's head into her lap.

Logan watched Remy for a moment and slowly retracted his claws, not breaking eye contact for a second. He traded placed with Scott, leaving the younger to keep an eye on the Acolyte, and removed his own glove to hold Rogue's. For a brief moment, his vision went dark and it felt like he was about to lose it all. But as his powers began to manifest in Rogue, Logan knew everything was just fine. The young woman let out a sudden cry as audible cracks sounded off, fractured and broken bones from the collision suddenly popping back into place and fusing as red splotches of future bruises slowly faded and seeped back into her body. It was a slow few minutes of Rogue's cries as her body corrected itself before she was able to take shallow breaths and focus herself on slowly sitting up.

Taking his attention away from Rogue, Scott grabbed Remy by his trench coat, looking his dead in the eyes.

"Now tell us what Magneto was after? What were you doing?"

"You think I'd break contract and tell you all that?" Gambit laughed, his signature smirk in place now that he saw the damage his team made reversed.

"There's no honor among thieves, whether you're a hired mercenary or not." Rogue drawled, standing up despite her friends protest and stretching out stiff joints.

Gambit looked at her, a genuine look of happiness to see her standing again grew on his face for a second, before he chuckled and raised his hands in defeat.

"Guess you X-Men are gonna have to take me in then, I don't believe you'll be getting much out of me otherwise."

"Or we could just shred you down piece by piece until you talk." Logan shot at the Cajun, interrupted by the women behind him collectively clearing their throats. Slowly, Logan sheathed his claws, maintaining eye contact with Remy the whole while.

* * *

Rogue sat cross legged on medbay bed as Hank made his way over with her x-rays and test results. Despite knowing she was fine, the healing factor from Logan guaranteed it, Kitty had still insisted she get a physical and usual run to make sure absolutely everything was okay. While Rogue really appreciated her friends concern, it was still a frustration to put up with.

"Give it to me straight, doc, how long do I have to live?" Rogue asked, her face solemn.

"I'm sorry, it doesnt look good." Hank said, not missing a beat. "You're completely healed, and are going to have a long and prosperous life."

"Oh, Hank, what am I going to do?" Rogue fained fainting back onto the bed dramatically.

The two couldn't hold back their laughter then, both dissolved in their own melodrama. The laughing fit slowly ended on it's own before Rogue sat up and hopped off the bed.

"In that case I'll be off."

"Actually, there is something I still need to check on." Hank interrupted, picking up his stethoscope from the bedside table.

"C'mon, Hank, I feel just fine." Rogue sat back on the bed, back straight as a pole while the older man pressed the diaphragm to her chest, listening to each deep breath.

"You may feel fine but there is something I want to keep an eye on. How has your breathing been the last few weeks?"

"It's been just fine, not getting winded or having issues catching my breath unless Logan is running training."

Hank chuckled at her jab at their friend before holding up one of the x-rays to the light for Rogue to see.

"You see that little mass?" He pointed to her chest x-ray, circling a small, grey spot in her lungs. "I'm going to run the usual tests, and with your health and its form I wouldn't say it's a tumor. If we're lucky, and even if we aren't with how small it is, everything is going to turn out just fine."

"There's a mass?" Rogue felt a sudden moment of panic.

Realistically, if there had been a tumor or something bad, the healing factor would have taken care of it. It couldn't be that bad then, maybe just a small growth or some sort of evolution of her mutation. But there was still the small possibility of something else, especially with Rogue knowing nothing about her biological family and medical history. At that point, it could be anything.

"We're going to keep an eye on it. This wasn't showing up in your last exam, so if it is anything-"

"We caught it early, yeah, yeah... Thanks, Hank." Rogue smiled, finally standing from the bed and grabbing her discarded chest plate before heading out of the medbay.

A mass could be anything, and Hank wasn't worried. Neither should she.


	2. Chapter 2

The holding cell was rather cozy, Remy had to admit. Not cozy in a way that he would want to stay there long, or even try turning it into a comfortable place for his current stay, but cozy in a small but not cramped place that at least gave him a cot and a chair. Currently, he was balanced on the back two legs on the chair and shuffling his deck of cards as Scott Summers stood guard outside the cell. It would be a quick interrogation, cut short by the Cajun blowing the door off his cell and escaping while leaving Rogue his calling card. Really, he didn't know what compelled him to turn himself over like that. But whatever the reason he had been so impulsive, he was letting his captures think he was at their mercy for the time being and enjoying a break from the doom and gloom of the Acolytes.

The silence of it all was broken as Rogue made her entrance, still fascining her chest plate back on after her exam. Scott didn't move a muscle as she approached, keeping a tight eye on Remy.

"Loosen up, or your face'll get stuck like that." Rogue chastised, giving a playful slap to Scott's shoulder.

"Funny." He said, betraying nothing on his face but letting his posture relax a bit, moving his focus onto Rogue. "You doing alright?"

"Just fine." Rogue gave him a soft smile before approaching the glass and locking eyes with Remy. "Alright, time to fess up."

Remy gave a sigh and let the front two legs of the chair connect with the floor again as he pocketed the deck of cards.

"I don't know what you're talking about, chere." The Cajun gave her his signature smirk and stretched out his arms, resting them behind his head.

"Funny." She spat. "Why did Magneto send y'all to that office? What was he looking to collect?"

"You just want me to spill my guts for you with no incentive?"

"Didn't anyone tell you it's rude to answer a question with a question?"

Remy burst into laughter then, getting the disapproving glare of Scott from behind Rogue.

"Well look's like you're about as rude as I am then, girly." He said.

"Don't call me girly."

Remy's mouth set in a thin line as he looked the woman over. She seemed perfectly healthy, maybe even with a bit more of a spring in her step from the healthing factor. Not a hair seemed out of place, but there was a hesitation in her eyes that was unmistakable. Something had shaken Rogue, but the high of the day and an interrogation were making her worry very well.

"Why don't you fess up first, darling. Tit for tat." Remy smiled, raising an eyebrow as Rogue narrowed her vision on him.

"Scott, why don't you go check in with the rest of the team." It was a demand, not a suggestion.

"I can't do that, you cant be alone with-"

"Scott, I dont want you to have to be witness to this." Rogue finally turned her full attention to Scott, her expression holding an intensity Scott rarely saw in his teammate.

"No, that's not how we do things." He places both hands on Rogue's shoulders, leaning close to illustrate his concern. "If you do... what I think you're going to do, that makes you no better than him."

Rogue placed a hand on Scott's wrist, giving it a gentle squeeze as she broke out a small smile for him. She could feel the warmth of his skin through his suit, radiating hot like a space heater. It gave her a dull ache as the thought that she could never truly feel that warm touch passed through her mind for a second before she shook it away. From his angle, Remy felt like he was intruding on an intimate moment. And intimate moment that didn't sit well in his chest.

"Don't worry, I'm not gonna do anything that'll get me in trouble. No one is gonna know anything happened."

Scott watched her for a moment before nodding and slowly leaving the holding cell. It was a minute before Rogue finally turned around from watching Scott leave and grabbed a stray chair to sit at eye level with Remy.

"Alright, what do you want for your info? It's not right, but you're not a totally bad guy, so I would be willing to stage a break for you. Just tell me what's up first." Rogue said.

"What's got you so spooked, chere?" Remy asked, leaning forward with his elbows supporting his weight on his knees and watching as Rogue faltered for a moment. "You'd never stand a chance at poke night in the LeBeau household. Fool that straight but your eyes really give it away."

There was a long moment of silence.

"What did Magneto want?"

"How about a date?"

Rogue laughed then, shaking her head at the absurdity of the man sitting in front of her.

"I have done a lot for the X-Men, but going out with you is crossing a line I'd never dream of crossing."

As Rogue ran a hand through her hair, taking a moment to laugh off the proposition, Remy let his smirk falter as a pang hit his chest suddenly. It had been a half joke, something to break the tension, but also a genuine sentiment. Her outright refusal of him and what he witnessed between her and Mr. Three Eyes before fell into one cohesive picture. Remy really had no chance, because Rogue had already found herself a man. She was in love with someone else.

"Then tell me, chere, what's got you so scared?" He asked again.

This time Rogue let out a huff and looked him in the eyes.

"During my exam they found a small mass in my lungs."

That was nearly the same shock as his previous revelation, leaving Remy mourning that he'd not only been late to a chance with a girl he had feelings for but that she was sick.

"God, what's with that look? I didn't say it's cancer, it's just a mass. Scar tissue or something." Rogue rolled her eyes before standing and walking closer to the glass. "You've got your information, now give me mine."

There was a rising tension as Remy watched Rogue, not bothering to keep on a poker face or anything as he swallowed and gave her a nod.

"Okay, fine, here's what's up..."

* * *

"That mad man turned on us!" St. John cried out as the rest of the Acolytes kept themselves busy in their wait for Magneto.

 "Don't act so shocked, it's not like he's a consistent face around here anyways." Victor stood from his place at the monitors, turning to the Australian with a glare that could stop the Hulk.

"Right, course, just- uh... you do realize him with the X-Men means bad news for us, right?"

It was almost like a jinx as the Piotr was sent flying across the room into his teammates, knocking the men to the ground. The men scrambled to get up, readying themselves for battle. Gambit had turned on them, given the X-Men the information on their mission and probably strategy to defeat them. Victor bared his teeth, standing at the ready to launch himself when the nearest mutant came near him. There was a long moment of waiting, he almost let his guard down as silence permiated the building. Then, suddenly, Victor had a terrible sinking feeling. Something grabbed his ankle and yanked the large man down, but instead of falling he began sinking down into the floor. He cried out, seeing for a moment St. John and Piotr turning in shock to see the second in command suddenly disappear under the floor.

"Hey there." A sickly sweet drawl came from behind the large, metal man then. "Remember me?"

Suddenly, Piotr's vision went black and he went down, the newly metallic vision of Rogue standing behind him. St. John panicked and revved his flame throwers in her direction, a blast of heat engulfing her. A quick laser shot to his tanks ended the attack quickly, though, as Scott lead the rest of the team in. A cold blast left the pyromaniac frozen in place, his flames dying down to not even an ember as the base was stormed and the few left Acolytes were apprehended. The knocked out and frozen Piotr and St. John were no trouble for the junior members of the team to subdue and carry on to an awaiting vehicle outside, but Victor Creed was predictably more of a pain. Kitty had managed to throw him off his rhythm in his capture, but it took her and a very determined Kurt popping in and out of space to fully subdue the beast.

The last thing Victor Creed wanted to see as he and the other men were stowed away in the armored van by the X-Men to be taken to a new facility for enhanced individuals was the swaggering form of Remy LeBeau walking towards the entrance of their now defunct outpost.

"LeBeau! You traiter!" He bellowed, a low growl echoing from his chest.

"Ah, bonjour, mon ami!" Remy greeted, waving as he backstopped through the entrance. "Sorry you found out this way, but I have to say... I never really enjoyed your work ethic, so I found some more compliant coworkers."

Victor roars then, the intense need to rip that pretty face off such a smug man overtaking him before the van doors were slammed in his face.

Inside, Gambit walked in on an operation he'd never expected. While at the main monitor Kitty typed away and decoded as much as they were able to access, including the recent heist, the rest of the team was set to investigating the rest of the base and dismantling a good deal of it. This was truly an end of an era. It was a true end to the Acolytes as they had been known now. Despite his minimal involvement with them, there was a bittersweet feeling he couldn't deny.

"Hey." Rogue left Kitty's side when she saw Remy approach from outside. "Why the long face? You better not be getting any regrets about this."

"Regrets? Non, chere." Remy laughed, his hands dug deep into his trench coat pockets. "Just commiserating a great contract I just lost."

Rogue rolled her eyes. Of course he was just missing the money he made being a bad guy.

"Well get over it fast, cuz we need some insider know how to get every last thing we can outta here."

Remy smiled, giving her a nod before following to her first place of inquiry.

* * *

There was a soft knock at the professor's door as Hank McCoy stood at the office entrance.

"Hank, come in." Charles said, looking up from the enrollment papers he was looking over.

"Professor, I wish this was under better circumstances, but... it's about Rogue."

Most times Rogue had been the topic of discussion it had been troubling news. That woman had a habit of getting involved in a lot of misfortune.

"Yes?" Charles set down his pen, giving Hank his full attention.

That was when he noticed the set of x-rays in Hank's hands, something he hoped was to show a cracked rib or fracture that would put Rogue out of commission for a while. Charles hoped very hard that it wasn't what he thought.

"During her exam I found something. I... I don't know exactly what it is, but I believe this mass is-"

Charles raised a hand to silence Hank before reaching out for the scans. Holding them up to the light, he examined the mass settled in the bottom of Rogue's left lung. The familiar silhouette against the shape of her lungs put a pit in the bottom of the professors belly.

"Does she know?" He asked.

"Yes, I mean..." Hank struggled for words. "I showed her the mass, but it seems to be dormant, I didn't want to scare her if it's not going to, to-"

"To sprout." Charles finished the sentence with a cold familiarity. "When the team returns from their mission, she'll need more scans. We have to keep a close eye on this, and she has to know what it is."

Hank nodded, taking the scans as Charles handed them back.

"Of course, professor."

The two regarded each other before Hank left the office, leaving Charles in a quiet uncertainty. A dull sadness stung at him, leaving him to look up at his shelf of mementos and a glass case that had sat there for only a few short years. Inside, the preserved bud of a pink rose sat as a stern reminder of struggles passed.

 


	3. Chapter 3

_"I'm sorry, Rogue. If this begins growing, there's only one option."_

Hank asked in confidence who it was Rogue had fallen for. Of course she refused to tell him, even she knew it was a doomed romance. That's how the infection had even started. That's how she sealed her fate. The mass, they would need to do a biopsy to be sure it was in fact plant matter, but at this point all signs pointed to them catching a dormant form of Hanahaki disease. For it to not have sprouted yet was rare, but there was no question as to why. Rogue knew Scott could never lover her back. For how close they'd become as the oldest members of the team, for how many nights they spent comforting each other or enjoying each others company, she knew he never returned her feelings. She'd known since he and Jean began dating back in high school.

But in the seven years since they graduated, Jean had gone off to university in pursuit of her doctorate and Rogue diluted herself into thinking there was a chance. High school sweethearts don't always work, espeically so long distance. So she waited. During breaks Jean never visited, she went home to her actual family, and it gave Rogue hope one day her nights spent with Scott would turn into something more. He couldn't hold out for Jean forever. That hope had kept her safe until the mass slowly grew from her seeds of doubt. There was something that could break her confidence.

_"Rogue, did you hear me?" Hank asked, unable to tell if the woman was even listening to him after explaining what they found._

_"What the fuck is a damn flower doing in my lungs?" Rogue spat, still sitting perfectly still on the medbay bed, looking at the new scans of her lungs as she held her knee close to her chest, the other foot dangling over the side of the bed._

_"It's a disease, only found in mutants. We aren't exactly sure what part of the genes cause this but in cases of... of unrequited love, the stress hormones give root to the plants. Starting in the lungs and sometimes heart, it will-"_

_Rogue closed her eyes, listening to the rest of the explaination through a dull throbbing in her ears. She'd finally done it, finally killed herself over a boy. Sealed her fate by being so ignorant to thing she'd find comfort in another person._

_"But there is a cure."_

"Hey, Rogue, you in there?" Kitty knocked on the bedroom door, listening closely for her friend.

"Go away." Rogue called out, letting her know this was not a time to be bothered. For how much Rogue loved Kitty, she could still be as much of a nusance as when they were teenaged roommates.

"Look, I just wanted to let you know that the professor gave Gambit an official trial run as an X-Man because of his help, and - well - um, he's kind of been looking for you. Isn't this the guy that kidnapped you in New Orleans?"

With a huff, Rogue got up and opened the door, pulling Kitty inside before giving the hall a look over. Stepping back inside, Kitty sat at the foot of Rogue's bed, looking up at her friend curiously.

"Hey, you've been... kinda distant since last night. Wanna talk about it?"

"He didn't kidnap me  _in_ New Orleans, he took me there after kidnapping me outside of BHS." Rogue corrected, falling back onto her bed and taking a deep breath. "And yes, it's the same guy."

"So that means... he's Mr. Queen of Hearts!" Kitty cooed at her friend before laughing.

After her return from New Orleans after all the chaos, Kitty very clearly remembered Rogue carrying around a queen of hearts card in her school binder, the only thing she decorated with that wasn't all doom and gloom. It had been a hotly debated topic among the gossip before Kurt gave them the inside scoop that she'd been given it by a boy. Eventually, the card disappeared and the gossip died down. Rogue had heard the gossip and decided, as the year was coming to a close, to retired the silly notion of the bad boy older man's calling card to the bottom drawer of her desk, still not having the heart to throw it out. It was probably still there, sitting under old notebooks that needed to be recycled.

"Yeah, and if he is?" Rogue was more antagonistic that usual, her words packing more venom.

"Hey, what's been up with you?" Kitty asked, pulling her legs up to sit crossed legged on the bed.

A long moment of silence followed. How was Rogue supposed to tell her best friend she was dying?

"Anna, you're scaring me." Kitty said.

For Kitty to have used Rogue's name like that, she must have been. But still, the silence continued for a long while until Rogue spoke.

"I... I'm sick, Kitty."

"W-what is it?"

The two women locked eyes for a moment before Rogue bit into her lip, tears beginning to well up in her eyes.

"It's, it's bad, Kit."

That was all Rogue could say before finally giving into the pain she'd been feeling since her diagnosis. With the very small chance it wasn't Hanahaki, Rogue considered herself a dead woman at this point. Collapsing into her friends arms, she began sobbing uncontrollably. Tears stained Kitty's sweater as she held her friend tight, feeling her own eyes begin to sting with tears. Rogue was always the strong one in the face of danger, and seeing her like this was new.

_"What? What is it?" Rogue demanded, standing from the bed and looking Hank in the eyes._

_"There's a doctor in Scottland that specializes in mutant health, she developed a surgery to cure early stages of Hanahaki." Hank explained. "She hasn't tested in on later or final stages, but the success rate has been through the roof."_

_"Okay, then lets go. If it's that easy-"_

_"Rogue, there is a catch." Hank began. "When the infection is removed..."_

"...so are the feelings that caused the infection." Rogue finished explaining the situation to Kitty, still sobbing her arms.

Kitty was frozen in shock, only holding her friend tighter as she rubbed her back.

"Rogue... Oh, Rogue, why didn't you tell me sooner?" She asked, tears finally falling from her own eyes.

"Because I knew you'd say to go through with the surgery. I-I can't just do that!" Rogue cried. "I-I can't... I can't just give up on Scott like that."

"Damn it, Rogue, you're going to die if you don't!" Kitty yelled, pushing Rogue away to look her in the eyes. "I know, you love Scott, we've always known that. But you're going to die if you don't get the surgery. Don't let yourself die for someone who doesn't love you back."

"Well, what if Kurt hadn't love you back?!" Rogue yelled, fed up with Kitty telling her what to do about her feelings. "If he hadn't loved you, if he hadn't been there for you after Lance left, and you ended up like this, would you have just given up and cut out all your feelings for him? Would you have given up on what you felt?"

The room was silent then. There was no way either of them were winning this argument. In the end, Kitty could only wipe her eyes and gave Rogue's hand a squeeze.

"I hope you know what you're doing. Not just to yourself, but to the rest of the team."

And with that, Kitty left. She made her way through the halls, passed new students and old friends alike as she made her way out towards the backyard. Upon exiting, she saw the usual post-mission routing of her teammates. Scott, Logan, and Kurt unwinding together with a game of basketball in the backyard. They were still tense, trying to unwind, as Kitty approached the edge of the court.

"Kurt?" She said, feeling fresh tears stinging her eyes.

Throwing the ball to try and score, Kurt turned to look at his girlfriend, suddenly noting her tone. The smell of sulfur permeated through the air as he blinked in front of her, placing his hands on her shoulders and giving her a soft squeeze.

"Kitty, what's wrong?" He asked.

Kitty tried to get words out, but in the end couldn't get anything sufficient out before finally giving in to a sob and falling into his arms. Kurt quickly held her tightly, petting her hair and whispering comforting things in her ear. Scott and Logan were just as shocked, letting the basketball fall between them  before rolling away. After a moment of the couple holding each other, it became evident the game was over for good now, and the men began their way inside.

"Kitty cat, what's wrong? Please, tell me." Kurt begged, pulling away to hold Kitty's face in his hands.

"Y-you need to talk to Rogue."

* * *

After Kitty left, all Rogue could do was let her tears fall freely. There was no stopping them now, and all Rogue wanted to do was cry. That made sense, she was sick and had made the decision her feelings were more important than staying with her team, alive and well. Of course she was sad but to her, this was more important. Eventually, she'd reach a later stage after her mass sprouted and took true root in her lungs, and that's when the pain would start. The roots would take hold in her lungs and start blooming, taking oxygen from her lungs and making breathing and functioning harder. Then the coughing would start, and she'd begin coughing blood and flowers. If it weren't horrible, she'd find it poetic. Eventually the coughing would turn to vomit and she'd be in the late stages as whole flowers would begin coming out. At that point, it would be a waiting game for the roots to tear her lungs apart and she'd drown in her own blood and flowers. Rogue knew what she'd chosen, and knew it was going to be okay.

If only she had known when she told Kitty before what was happening, that they hadn't been totally alone. If only she'd known that just outside their door, Remy had stood there listening as she sobbed out her love for Scott and how she'd resigned herself to die for her love, leaving the man leaning against the wall in a dumbfounded state. He clutched at his chest, an ache building in his chest as those words sunk in. Assuming she was in love with Scott was one thing, but hearing it and hearing the horrible news that he didn't even feel the same way and had resulted in her inevitable death was even more heartbreaking to Remy.

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know, the more I write this the more I realize that if Hanahaki disease was a thing in the X-Men universe, everyone would be dead at this point.  
> Also sorry it's so short, I'm getting a case of writers block while I try and develop the subplots along with the main story.

A small sob left Kitty as she curled up on the couch, holding a warm cup on tea in her hands. For hours, she had been utterly inconsolable. Kurt wasn't sure exactly what had happened, all he knew was it was about his sister and once Kitty was okay he needed to talk to her. Whatever it was, whatever had been said between Kitty and Rogue, it had left Kitty a mess. All Kurt could do now was be here for Kitty and try to think of a way to get Rogue to open up. So for the time being, he held Kitty close and gently rubbed her shoulders, humming as she finally began calming down. 

"I'm so scared... I just... It feels like this place is falling apart." Kitty whispered. "Like, we're all here and most of us are okay, but the original group of us are fracturing apart."

"But we're still here." Kurt placed a hand over Kitty's.

"Please don't take this the wrong way, but it's... it's not the same."

Kitty wiped her eyes again, mascara smeared across her cheekbones and sweater sleeve as she put down the cup and turned to Kurt, holding his hand in hers.

"Back when it was just the first class, just the six of us, things always felt like they were going to be okay no matter how bad it got. But now... Scott has become even more of an uptight ass, Jean has been away at school forever, Evan went back to the Morlocks, and Rogue is..." Kitty couldn't even finish her sentence as new tears built up in her eyes. "We're not the same anymore, and now it doesn't feel stable. It feels like..."

"Like the rug is being pulled out from under us." Kurt finished her thought, trying to smile reassuringly.

He'd felt the same way for a while now. Really, since Jean and Evan left. Jean left a year after Apocalypse for school, and Evan the year after when the Morlocks needed him back. It didn't help that he watched Kitty in those years struggle with her on again off again, evil again good again, ex Lance. He'd never liked the guy for Kitty. Had it been any other guy, he would have respected Kitty's interests in another guy. But really, Lance? The guy had never been good and proved it with how often he went good guy bad guy on them. It wasn't until the last time Lance turned on them that Kitty took it upon herself to take him in. No one had seen Kitty in such a state before.

"I'm so sorry, for all those years I rejected you, not even realizing how it could hurt you. How much you loved me..." Kitty choked on her words, thinking about how Kurt could have fallen to Rogue's fate.

"Kitty, you don't need to apologize." Kurt couldn't help but chuckle, bringing one of Kitty's hands to his lips and kissing across her knuckles. "I'll admit, when we were kids I was completely enamored, but I would never call it love. Not until you showed me what it really meant to be in love."

Kitty blushed, pulling Kurt in for a tight hug before reaching for her cup of tea again. She sighed as the temped mug sloshed around, their conversation had distracted her from it long enough for it to go room temperature.

"I'll be right back, gotta nuke this for a minute."

Kurt sat there, watching her walk back towards the kitchen. A quiet fell over the room in her absence as the man took note of what she had said. He would need to remember that when he talked to Rogue. As Kitty took her time reheating the tea, and probably taking a moment to take a few deep breath, Kurt took a moment to fish a small velvet box out of his pants pocket. Opening it, he smiled down at the delicate band sitting inside. Now, most definitely, wasn't the right time to ask Kitty. But Kurt so badly wanted to ask Kitty to marry him. He'd wanted to for so long. Their four years together had been so great, and for the last year he knew Kitty was the one he wanted to be with forever. The sound of someone clearing their throat caught Kurt off guard, causing him to jump and toss the ring box. He quickly dove to catch it up off the carpet, falling to his knees before looking over to see Logan standing in the doorway.

"O-oh, Logan, hello." Kurt smiled, trying to stuff the ring back into the box with fumbling fingers.

"So, you're finally taking the leap?" He asked, eyeing the ring box.

"Well, I mean, I want to, it's just not now. I mean, you know, everything happening. It's just, huh, it's not like... right?"

Logan chuckled lowly at Kurt's fumbling. These kids.

"Look, elf, as long as you're sure, you're doing the right thing."

The two men looked towards the kitchen as the microwave beeped and Kitty opened and closed the door. Kurt looked back to Logan, who winked before continuing out of the doorway and on the way he'd been distracted from. Before Kurt was able to stand and coordinate himself, he heard a small gasp. Looking up, he was greeted with the sight of Kitty, mug in hand, looking at him down on a knee with the ring box. The two locked eyes for a moment before anyone spoke.

"Kitty, I..." There was no backing out now. "I didn't think it was going to happen like this, but I guess the universe gave me a shove and-"

"Yes."

Kurt blinked, confusion washing over him.

"W-wait you-"

"Yes!" Kitty smiled, her eyes watering up again and she hurried over. Setting the mug on the coffee table, she pulled Kurt into her arms and held him tightly. "Yes, yes, yes!"

Kurt held onto Kitty as he laughed, leaving soft kisses on the side of her face. After several long moments of this, Kitty finally pulled away and Kurt fumbled to pull the ring out of the box and slide it onto her finger. The two embraced again as Kitty let the tears fall, happy tears this time thankfully. Eventually the couple made their way back onto the couch as Kurt held Kitty's hands, rubbing his thumb across the back of them as she tried to blink away the tears.

"I... God, this is never what I thought you were going to do." Kitty wiped at her eyes. "I mean, you, we..."

Kurt chuckled as he gave her hand a squeeze.

"I don't even know what to say, after all these years..." After a deep breath, her smile began to falter as thoughts of the day played through her head. "Kurt we can't, we can't tell anyone yet."

"What?" Kurt sat up a little more, his brow furrowed. "Kitty, if you don't-"

"No, no, no! I want to marry you, I really do." Kitty bit her lip and thought over what to say without causing a misunderstanding. "Kurt, this is what we want, but right now... right now isn't the right time to tell everyone. You just... You need to talk to Rogue."

"Kitty-"

"Please, it's not my place to tell you what's going on, but you'll understand after talking to her."

Kurt let out a sigh and nodded.

"Okay, I trust you."

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay this is super late and not that good cuz I'm been having major writers block so I took a plot point I was going to use far later just so I could push this out and find new inspiration for this plot. There's three side plots to the major one so this is basically introducing number two of three sub plots and next chapter I'm gonna get back on the main plot. Feel free to send prompts for this story because I could use the inspiration.

It was a shaky feeling in Rogue's arms that made her hold them crossed tightly against her chest. It probably looked like she was being closed off or didn't want to hear what she was about to be told, but realistically it was because she didn't want her former mentors to see how scared she was. Sitting on the medbay bed again, she watched as Hank hung up the new scans. The professor watched with a sternly set face as Hank stepped away and began to explain.

"Here in the first scan we can see the dormant buds. Extremely minimal rooting, just enough to keep them in place, as well as the the actual buds still being in a state of germination." With a heavy moment of contemplation, he motioned to the new scan. "This is the buds current state. It's... It's begun growing."

It didn't take any further explaination as they looked to the scan of Rogue's lungs. The small mass, which previously looked like a mass of tissue, now had the distinctive look of stalks growing out of the original mass. Now, the tallest stalk was only a few short inches, the smallest barely showing up between the others at an inch. No sign of flowering was showing yet, the plants smooth and still growing to maturity. A sick feeling settled in Rogue's stomach then as she tried not to breath too hard. Suddenly seeing everything inside her, being aware of the new size of the flowers, she could swear she felt them with each breath. The sick feeling began to grow then until the feeling of bile and acid hit Rogue's throat. Before Hank could continue his explaination of the situation, Rogue was up and sprinting towards the closest trash can before her stomach began to empty itself. The more her stomach retched and knocked up to push everything out of her, the more Rogue swore she could feel those stalks poking and proding at her lungs.

Eventually, there was nothing left for her stomach to empty and the paranoid feeling of the plants inside her relaxed.

"How much longer would you say I have...?" Rogue croaked out, accepting a handkercheif from the professor as she slowly made her way back.

"I can't say for sure, your case is progressing rather slowly." Hank sighed. "Rogue, you're still just at the end of the first stage. It's so rare to catch it this early, we can cure it still."

Rogue didn't acknowledge Hank's pleas for her to reconsider as she pulled a knee up to her chest and took a deep breath. Charles and Hank met gazes before the older gave Hank a nod. Excusing himself, Hank made his way out of the medbay to his office.

"Professor, if Hank couldn't talk me out of this what makes you think you can?" Rogue said. "I've made my decision."

Charles sighed and motioned for Rogue to follow him, rolling out of the medbay then. It was a quiet walk through the mansion, the few students out of lessons avoiding the adults making their way through the halls, until making it to the first floor office of the professor. Rogue waited close to the door as Charles took his place behind the desk.

"Could you do me a favor and grab that rose over there." Charles motioned to the shelf of mementos across the office from him.

Looking across the top shelf, Rogue reached up and carefully pulled down the case. Looking over it, the rose blooms were near crystallized upon inspection. The preservation of them captured an eternal beauty that only seemed more unreal in this crystal state. Rogue carried it over and placed it in front of the professor who carefully removed the glass dome top.

"There's many things that are unfair in this world." Charles began, carefully lifting on of the roses to admire it before holding it out to Rogue. "Love is one of those many unfair things."

"Tell me about it." She lifted the rose to admire in the light, a smile coming to her lips as she watched the light bouncing off the petals.

"You've grown a lot since coming to the institute, Rogue." Charles started. "But your stubbornness is not one to be curbed."

Rogue raised an eyebrow as she handed Charles back the rose.

"And is that a bad thing?"

"In this case I would say so." The professor sighed. "You aren't alone in this struggle, it's a hard decision to make. Choosing between your love and your life, it may as well feel like you're losing both in both cases. But sometimes, choosing to live will do that love more justice."

"How so?" Rogue asked, her words edged with venom. "Feels more like throwing it away."

"Moving on and putting aside those feelings, ones unreturned, will give you more time with that love even if it isn't in a way you previously wanted." Charles watched the rose, his mood far more somber than before. "It gives you a chance to be with them longer and help them more than if you were..."

"Professor, are you... Is that rose...?"

Charles cleared his throat and replaced the rose and glass dome.

"As soon as you know what you want to do moving forward, Hank and I will make the arrangements for you. The sooner your decision the better."

There was an uncomfortable silence as Rogue nodded and headed towards the door. Just outside, Rogue found herself reeling, realizing what the professor had been trying to tell her in showing the roses he kept. The professor chose whatever it was that meant staying with the person that didn't return his feelings over keeping his romantic feelings and holding them till his end. That didn't seem... right to Rogue, not like she thought it.

"There you are, chere." A drawling voice called from down the hall.

Rogue cursed under her breath, trying her hardest to keep it together. In the week of Remy being on the team and ever present in the mansion, Rogue hadn't exactly grown any closer with him but had found their fighting banter bordered far closer to genuine flirting and camaraderie. It wasn't exactly what she was expecting and she really didn't know how to feel about it with everything happening now.

"Now, what are you planning for this evening?"

"I just-" Rogue started.

"Cancel it, because I have a surprise for you, mon petit."


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay chapter is on time! We're probably going to spend a bit following this before I touch on the subplots again. There's still another I haven't introduced yet, which may be next if it fits. Otherwise we'll look at Kitty and Kurt again, which I realized there's a fun way to twist at their plot now moving forward that hadn't clicked in my head until now.

There really was part of Rogue that didn't want to be out with Remy in that moment, she had just learned how her condition was progressing and it was still unprocessed in her mind. It was scary and confusing and something she didn't know how to deal with. And here Remy was, still dragging her out on the town like he hadn't even given her a thought. After unceremoniously pulling her from the mansion, Remy lead Rogue into the city and into the nightlife. In the years since moving to this new home, Rogue had never experienced this nightlife outside of a few bad girl trips with her friends. Remy, on the other hand, seemed to know the city intimately already. When pulling her into a small back alley club entrance, the bouncer didn't even blink before letting him in.

The dark club with booming music was everything one would expect for a night club, leaving Rogue to find the farthest corner booth to Remy's disappointment.

"Come on, chere, let's dance." He pleaded, walking back to the booth and placing a drink in front of Rogue.

"I don't feel like it." She snapped, grabbing her drink and giving it a quick drink.

Remy rolls his eyes, leaning back and sipping his own drink.

"Why not? You gotta let loose every once in a while, all fun and no place." He chuckled, raising an eyebrow at Rogue's piercing stare.

That ended up being the pace of the night then. Remy would push her to loosen up and enjoy the night, get her more drinks, and end up dancing without her until getting bored and rejoining her. Rogue, left in her own brooding, ignored most of Remy's attempts to open her up and took the drinks thankfully. Over the hours, her composure slowly melted away with the alcohol and frustration. In one of Remy's dance breaks, he brought over a new set of drinks for the table and pushed one closer to Rogue.

"Rogue feeling more like having fun?" He asked, smirk smeared across his face.

"Fuck you." Rogue spat, getting up from the booth.

Stumbling to her feet, Rogue watched Remy hurry to help her and slapped away his hands.

"Why did you drag me out here? Really? Cuz I ain't having fun."

"Cuz you ain't trying." Remy tried to keep his smirk up, but faltered as he was pushed aside. "Come on, I'm just trying to help out.

"How?! How is this helping?! Do you even have any fucking idea what's going on right now?" Rogue nearly screamed, realizing those around them were starting to pay attention.

With a huff, she hurried passed Remy and towards the exit. She knew he was going to follow her, it was who Remy was, the excited lost puppy that was never far behind her. It was utterly and completely annoying, even more so when the others at the mansion pointed it out. Kitty told her about it when Remy first joined, Kurt started the joke he was her lost puppy, and everyone else caught on. What hurt most to Rogue in these last weeks was when even Scott joined the bandwagon in the joke. That was a hit she didn't expect and hurt in more than an emotional way.

"Wait, Rogue, I'm sorry. What's wrong?" Remy called out, following her into the alley.

Turning around then, Rogue shot her fist straight to the man's face. He caught her wrist just in time, looking at her wide eyed and hurt. The tears in her eyes began to pour out then, seeing the shock in Remy she felt in her heart.

"Why won't you leave me alone...?" She asked, voice quiet and breaking.

Remy swallowed, letting go of Rogue's wrist and watching as tears fell down her pale cheeks. Everything in him wanted to reach out and wipe them away, kiss away the pain she was finally showing after shutting everyone out for weeks. That thought threw him for a moment, trying to focus on what it was Rogue actually needed now.

"Because you shouldn't be alone right now." He said, taking a deep breath.

"Why? Why does everyone suddenly care if I'm alone or not?" Rogue felt the anger growing inside her again.

"No one should be alone when they're..." Remy couldn't even say it, he couldn't even think that Rogue was dying.

"How did you find out?" She asked, the tears still falling as mascara began running across her pale skin.

"Please," Remy tried to laugh and lighten up the situation, but how could you do that in a situation like this, "Kitty and you weren't exactly quiet when you talked about it."

Rogue pushed him, her eyes not able to meet his as sobs slowly pushed up from her chest. He let her, watching as she continued pushing him back and crying before breaking out in full sobs. Why was he being so nice about this? All Rogue wanted was to be left alone, and having Remy be so goddamn worried and caring compared to everyone else aggressively pushing her to take the surgery. It was confusing and scary. 

"You're a fucking asshole." Rogue spat, a sob breaking through as she finally let go of the tough mask she'd been keeping up for weeks now to cope.

Her body was racked with sob after sob as she stopped fighting against Remy. He stood back for a minute, not sure what to do, before placing a hand on her shoulder. For once, Rogue welcomed the advance instead of shirking it off with a sarcastic comment and stepping into his arms. The pair stood together, Rogue enveloped in Remy's arms as her head was cradled against his shoulder and mascara stained tears soaked into his grey shirt, for a long time as she cried. That was when she felt it, the small catch in her lung that trigger the sobs into coughs. It was hoarse and croaking and painful as she stumbled back, hands to her mouth as her body tried to push out the matter irritating her lungs.

"Rogue? Rogue?!" Remy stayed close, watching as she fell to her knees and began retching.

The bile came up first, hitting the cement in a splash of stomach acid and alcohol that burned coming up. But it didn't stop there as she didn't stop coughing. The next to come up was blood, drops dripping from her purple lips before the final piece came from her. A small, two inch stalk fell to the ground, followed by much more blood, as it's roots curled in around a piece of tissue.

"Oh god... Rogue?" Remy placed a hand against her shoulder.

"I... It..." Rogue tried to speak as she looked down at the flower stalk, her head rushing and blood continued to drip from her mouth.

She reached out for Remy then as her vision went spotty and quickly going black. Remy grabbed her before Rogue fell into the pool of blood and bile. She was out cold, limp as he pulled her up into his arms bridal style and started hurrying out of the alley from the club and back to the mansion.

"Come on, hold on, chere." He begged. 


	7. Chapter 7

This was the scariest thing Remy had encountered. After reaching the Xavier Mansion, Rogue was rushed into the medbay and Remy was kept out to explain what happened. But how could be even focus when he didn't know if Rogue was going to pull through? They couldn't say what was wrong until she was stable and Hank could assess her state. With what Rogue had coughed up, no one was sure how long that would take.

"Damn it, Gambit, what the hell happened?!" Scott shouted, grabbing Remy by his collar.

Remy had been in a frozen state, watching the medbay door in shock as he waited to hear what happened. Finally tearing his eyes away, Remy looked into Scott's eyes through the red tint of his glasses, his eyes glossed over in tears.

"I-I was just trying to give her a good time." He started. "And then..."

"Scott, put him down."

Looking back, Scott saw Hank walking towards them. He let go of Remy and stepped back as he took a deep breath.

"Rogue...?" Remy asked, a tight bound of guilt in his chest.

"She's going to be okay." Hank said.

Relief overcame Remy, nearly sending him down to his knees as he muttered a prayer of thanks. After seeing her collapsed and cough up one of the plants, Remy feared her condition was accelerating faster. But if Hank was so calm and sure, then she must be okay.

"She should avoid alcohol and stress from here on out. Getting so worked up is what caused the coughing fit." Hank explained.

"Is anyone going to tell me what happened to Rogue?" Scott demanded.

Hank and Remy looked to each other for a moment before Hank sighed and placed a hand on Scott's shoulder.

"It's best if you talk to her yourself."

* * *

The first thing Rogue heard was the beeping of the heart monitor, slowly lulling her booze fogged consciousness back into reality. She wasn't fully there, but she was there enough to know she had fucked up. The tubes stuck up her nose tickled as they pumped into oxygen and helped her breath as she took deep breaths. It took several moments before her eyes willed themselves open and look around the medbay. All looked quiet and peaceful until her gaze turned to the right of her bed, seeing the stoic form of Scott sitting beside her then.

"S... Sc-"

"Hey, take it easy, okay?" He said, leaning over and placing a gloved hand on her forearm. 

Looking down, Rogue saw the latex gloves Scott put on, the warmth of his skin radiating through. It felt almost like he was actually touching her.

"Rogue, what's going on?" Scott asked, his brow knit together in concern. "I thought, we all thought, it was just because of Gambit. Why didn't you tell us you were sick?"

Rogue took a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment before trying to clear her throat.

"Hank says... he says I got some kind of mutant disease." She started. "There's... god it sounds so stupid... there's plants growing in me. They're growing and eventually they're gonna, well, they're gonna kill me."

 _Kill me._ It rang through Scott's mind, yet Rogue herself seemed calm as she said it. Was she so resigned with her death already?

"Is it... terminal?" Scott asked, his voice low.

"Might as well be." Rogue scoffed.

Pulling his hand away, Scott stood, pacing from the seat around the room before returning and taking his seat again. He took several deep breaths before finally looking to her again.

"So there's a chance?"

Rogue refused to meet his gaze again. She could feel his eyes watching her, trying to puzzle her out, the way everyone seemed to look at her anymore. Why couldn't people treat her normally anymore? 

"Is there a chance, Rogue?" Scott asked again.

"Yeah, I guess there is." She finally said.

"Then why aren't you jumping at it?" He pushed, leaning close. "Of everyone on the team, of everyone who has ever come through this institute, you have always fought the hardest. Why aren't you fighting now?"

There was a long moment Rogue was quiet, thinking, trying to decide what to do. If she told Scott the truth, the whole truth, it could go very badly. But he wouldn't leave her be until he knew.

"If I do, I'm gonna lose something very important to me." Rogue said hesitantly.

"Why isn't anyone being straight about this?" Scott snapped. "Please, stop beating around what's going on."

"Scott, you can't always know everything!" Rogue snapped back, her eyes cutting deep into him. "Sometimes you just need to trust me."

The heart monitor next to Rogue began beeping faster then, getting the attention of Hank in his office just outside. He made his way in, looking between the two and firmly fixing his eyes on Scott.

"I know this is hard for both of you, but Rogue has made her decision, Scott." Hank said, a solemn tone in his voice. "We have all explained to her the repercussions and she knows what is at stake."

It felt nice having Hank stand up for her, despite his own attempts to change Rogue's mind. But as a doctor, he could only do so much. Scott deflated in his seat, leaning back and looking away from Rogue as his eyes screwed shut. She began wondering, maybe he did feel the same way, maybe this pain wasnt just for a teammate. Maybe Scott felt the same.

Slowly opening her mouth to speak, Rogue quickly detracted her confession and sat in silence with him. It was too big a risk, too much at stake if he didn't love her back. Instead she opted for the silence the continued, watching his face with a patient gaze. It went on maybe ten minute, maybe an hour, Rogue couldn't tell. All she cared to keep track of in that time was Scott. If she was going to die, she was going to do it remembering that face, and so she spent her time memorizing it. That jawline, that neatly combed hair, those ridiculous glasses. Every last bit of it.


End file.
